Nighttime Playground
by Summer Tea
Summary: "Let's go to the park." Kurt pushed the door open with his hip and shot Blaine a look. "Are you kidding me with this? It's like 9 at night." "That's the best time to be at the playground. Everything is so still and quiet."


_I'm lonely._

Kurt looked at his phone and sighed. Blaine was fishing again. He typed out a quick response – _I'm working on a paper, I can't lavish you with attention right now_ – and tossed the phone back onto his bed.

A few minutes later, it buzzed again. _Come out and play with me. :(_

In his mind's eye, Kurt could see Blaine looking at him with puppy-dog eyes, his lower lip pouting. He sighed again. _Fine. I'll meet you at the Lima Bean in half an hour._

_:D :D :D_

Kurt shoved his books into his backpack. It looked like he'd be finishing his paper tomorrow.

* * *

"It's actually quite nice out. Hardly freezing." Kurt tightened his scarf around his neck.

"It's bracing." Blaine smiled.

They stood in line at the coffee shop, which was winding down as they got ready to close.

Kurt glared at him, but Blaine just smiled wider. "It's nice out! The snow is melting, you don't see your breath when you go out. Oh! Let's get some cocoa. It's cocoa weather I think."

"Fine. But you're paying, to make up for all the extra sugar I'm putting in my body in order to appease you."

"Deal."

They stepped up to the register and Blaine flashed his eyes at the cashier. "Can I get two medium hot chocolates? To go, please."

"Would you like whip cream on those?"

Before Kurt could protest, Blaine cut him off. "Please. Extra, if you can." The girl went to make their drinks and Blaine pulled out his wallet. "Don't give me that," he said to Kurt, without looking up. "I'm spoiling you." He handed over a five and waved her off when she offered him his change.

They stood in silence for a moment, each of them staring off into space. An idea spread across Blaine's face, making his eyes light up. "I know what we're going to do when we get our drinks!" He smiled and pressed his tongue into the back of his teeth, bouncing up and down on his toes. He reminded Kurt of an overgrown puppy.

"Sit down at a table, discuss philosophy while we drink our cocoa, and then retire back to our homes where I can finish some of my work?

"No." The girl came with their drinks, two cups mounded with heaps of whip cream. Blaine took them, thanking her profusely before handing one off to Kurt. They turned and headed outside. "Let's go to the park."

Kurt pushed the door open with his hip. "Are you kidding me with this? It's like 9 at night."

"That's the best time to _be_ at the playground. Everything is so still and quiet." He linked his arm in Kurt's and rubbed his head on Kurt's shoulder. "Please?" He looked up at Kurt with big eyes.

Kurt rolled his in mock exasperation and shook his head. "The things I do for you." To be honest, Kurt kind of loved Blaine's enthusiasm when he got an idea stuck in his head. Not every idea, but the cute little random ones that didn't involve choreography and ultimate humiliation.

But he let himself be led down the street to the nearby playground, tucked away from the road behind the middle school. The whip cream started to melt down the sides of the cup and he lapped it away with his tongue. "So was this all part of your plan, or are we taking this step by step as it comes to you?" He took a cautious sip.

"I like to think I go where ever the wind may take me." Blaine wiggled his eyebrows and sucked in a puff of cream.

They chattered as they walked, about school and the Warblers. Nothing of importance, but satisfying in its own way. Kurt always appreciated how easy it was for him to be around Blaine. He let his eyes graze quickly over the other boys face as he described some spectacle or another that had happened in school, then busied himself with his drink when Blaine looked back at him, laughing at his own story. Kurt grinned back.

When they turned the corner and the play-scape came into sight, Blaine de-aged by about ten years. His whole body hummed and he untangled himself from Kurt, almost running towards it. Kurt laughed to himself but didn't chase after him, instead strolling along while Blaine plunked himself down on one of the swings.

"Dibs!"

Kurt slowly made his way over. "I assume this is the best one, for reasons that make no sense."

"Yes. The chains are about half a foot shorter, meaning you get to swing higher."

"Blaine that's -"

"Nope. You swing higher. That's all there is to it." He shrugged his shoulders as if to say _I don't make the rules of the playground, I just follow them. _He gulped down some of his cocoa.

"Right," Kurt said, nodding and settling himself into a swing. He hooked his arms around the chains and leaned back, staring up at the night sky. "For a night so clear, it's actually not that bad out. Spring must really be on it's way."

Blaine leaned over and set his cup on the ground under the swing next to him. He pushed off with his feet and started into the rhythm of swinging, tucking his legs under him on the way back and pushing them in front of him on the way forward. Kurt sipped his drink.

"We used to go to the playground every weekend when I was little. Me and my dad." Blaine pumped his legs lazily. "It was all wood and metal and rubber tires, which I guess is incredibly unsafe by today's standards. There was like, a little climbing wall kind of thing and a puppet stage, and little stadium. And they had a few walkie talkies that never really worked, so when you talked into them, you always sounded like the adults on the Peanut's cartoons."

Kurt's eyes followed Blaine as he swung back and forth, coming almost parallel with the top bar.

"It was just far enough away that I didn't know any of the other kids. Didn't go to school with them. So I was able to act a little differently, a little bit more myself. Since I wasn't going to be seeing them the next day. I guess even when I was little..."

He dragged his heels in the coating of wood chips, slowing himself down. "I don't know. I guess I like coming back to playgrounds. Remembering what it was like to not have to worry about keeping myself in check."

Kurt swallowed a mouthful of cocoa. "I wasn't big on playgrounds when I was little. There were too many people around. And everything was too dirty." He glanced around. "But I can see the appeal now."

Silence crept over them again, comfortable and calm. Kurt gazed up at the sky again, taking in all the stars.

"Thanks, Kurt." Blaine spun lazily back and forth on his swing, his face pressing into the chain.

"For what?" He took a sip of cocoa, looking over the rim at his friend.

"For not making fun of me when I want to do stupid things like swinging in the middle of the night." He dug his toes into the wood chips so he was facing Kurt. "For indulging me."

Kurt licked his lips, staring at Blaine as the other boy's face softened in the dusky light of the street lamps.

"For always being there."

His stomach twisted, and he swallowed hard before realizing that he hadn't taken another drink. Blaine smiled at him and reached over, grabbing the chain of Kurt's swing so they were pulled close together. Without saying anything, he ran his thumb over Kurt's chin, swiping up a glob of whip cream, and licked it off his fingertip.

Something changed. Kurt could feel it. Something in the air. Something between them.

Blaine glanced down, but Kurt couldn't peel his eyes away from his face. He felt it as Blaine touched his face again, fingers sticky with cream, rubbing gently against his bottom lip.

His tongue darted out slightly, tasting it. Blaine grabbed both chains of Kurt's swing and locked their legs together before leaning towards him. Kurt felt his ribcage squeeze, but leaned in, his eyes closing.

Blaine gently sucked on Kurt's lip, inhaling sharply through his nose. Kurt covered Blaine's hand with his own and pressed back into Blaine's mouth, making both their bodies sway as the hung. Blaine pulled back slightly and nuzzled Kurt's nose with his own, then he tilted his head and they kissed again, mouths soft and warm.

They broke apart, and Kurt looked at him, eyes half open, dazed. "That was nice."

"I'm sorry," Blaine whispered.

Kurt opened his eyes wider. "For what?"

"I said I didn't want to screw this up."

"You also said you were terrible at romance. But you're doing okay." He pressed their foreheads together.

"But I'm going to. Screw things up. I can't help it."

"It's fine. My whole life is screwed up." Kurt laughed softly. "Having something nice and perfect would be kind of weird. This will fit right in."

Blaine let go of Kurt's swing and they were pulled away from each other. Blaine rolled the soles of his feet on the ground so he swayed. "Promise you won't laugh?"

"Of course."

"You make me feel like when I was little. When I was at the playground. Like I didn't have to be anyone special and that was okay."

Kurt took a sip of he cocoa, ignoring the fact that it was almost stone cold. "Why would I laugh at that?"

"Uh, because it's cheesy as hell?"

"No, it's adorable." Blaine didn't say anything, but Kurt could see him smiling.

He set his own cup on the ground and pushed off with his toes, slowly building up speed, listening to the air whistle by his ears. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Blaine joining him, grinning.


End file.
